Deciduous Delight Triptych Artist Statement:

This fall-themed triptych, titled Deciduous Delight, came about from a client commission for three large autumn landscapes to hang above her home office desk (what an honor!), and we worked out a deal that I could print a limited edition of these to be able to share with my broader audience as well.  

With a triptych prompt, I was aiming for three individual artworks that can stand on their own, but when set together, tell a larger story— and if you know my work, you know I love creating artwork with a story! I began this prompt by asking myself, “What are Nature’s stories in the fall season?.” 

I landed on the story of deciduous tree leaves that give that iconic fall color. Each of the three artworks shares a stage in the leaves’ story over the fall season and their importance for ecosystem survival leading into the cold winter months:

The first artwork on the left, titled Misty Mornings, references the cool fall air that sweeps in after a warm summer and how that is the first signal for the deciduous trees to begin letting go of their leaves in preparation for the cold winter ahead. Before dropping their leaves, the tree absorbs nutrients from those leaves and stores them in its roots to help sustain it over winter. Chlorophyll, responsible for the green color of leaves, is one of the first molecules absorbed for its nutrients which is why the leaves turn red, orange or yellow before dropping to the ground.

The second artwork, titled Shedding Shades, illustrates the trees shedding their leaves as a method of energy conservation throughout the cold winter, so they can survive for the leaf cycle to begin again come spring. Once the tree absorbs the nutrients from the leaves, it drops the leaves so it can focus its energy on its trunk and root system. By shedding its leaves, the tree is also protecting itself from being blown over easily in windier winter conditions. 

The third artwork on the right, titled Living Layers, illustrates the importance of the leaves on the ground after they have been let go by the tree. The leaves covering the ground act as a natural mulch and compost, feeding the soil below and act as a vital part of the wildlife habitat in the area. Many critters, including invertebrates like pill bugs & millipedes, moth & butterfly caterpillars, salamanders, turtles, birds and more use the leaf litter for food, shelter and nesting material over the winter months when other resources are sparse. 

For many people, the shedding of the fall leaves, while beautiful, often signals the need for that “fall yard clean-up,” and I want to encourage you to try a different fall clean-up method this year instead, for the sake of your backyard ecosystem and the planet as a whole. Instead of raking them up, bagging them up and sending them off to a landfill to rot and cause methane gas, a greenhouse gas, to be released into the atmosphere, consider leaving the leaves instead. I know that might be an appalling idea to many, but here are some great methods for maintaining the leaf litter in your yard to benefit the environment without causing a matted leafy/ muddy mess of your yard, thanks to the National Wildlife Federation’s article by Laura Tangley: 

• Run over the leaves in your lawn with a mulching mower to chop them up into smaller bits that can be absorbed as compost to fuel your yard in the coming year.

• Rake shredded leaves into garden beds to act as a valuable mulch and compost to feed your garden in the coming year. 

• Rake leaves into small piles and let them decompose over winter. Spread over your garden beds in spring to let the leaf mold act as a soil amendment.

• Make a compost pile or add leaves as “brown material” to your existing compost pile! 

• Make a brush shelter by piling leaves along with sticks and dead plant stems for wildlife to shelter over winter

• Still too many leaves after sharing the wealth of leaf nutrients with your own yard? Share them with neighbors, friends or take them to a local yard waste composting facility to support your community with your leaf bounty! 

I hope this Deciduous Delight triptych brings you joy with its cozy colors, interlocking composition and story, but I also hope it sparks some inspiration to view your leaf litter as a natural bounty instead of a burden this fall season and for many years to come!